Chief Seattle, 1786 - 1866
The only known photo of Chief Seattle was taken in 1865 when he was about 80.
Henry A. Smith reminisced about Chief Seattle in a Seattle Sunday Star issue of October 29, 1887:
Old Chief Seattle was the largest Indian I ever saw, and by far the noblest-looking. He stood 6 feet full in his moccasins, was broad-shouldered, deep-chested, and finely proportioned. His eyes were large, intelligent, expressive and friendly when in repose, and faithfully mirrored the varying moods of the great soul that looked through them. He was usually solemn, silent, and dignified, but on great occasions moved among assembled multitudes like a Titan among Lilliputians, and his lightest word was law.
Later in the text, Smith was quoted as saying: His influence was marvelous. He might have been an emperor but all his instincts were democratic, and he ruled his loyal subjects with kindness and paternal benignity. His voice, Smith said, was like a trumpet-tone, like the startling reveille of a bass drum, when silence became as instantaneous and perfect as that which follows a clap of thunder from a clear sky.
Seattle's real name, in the Lushootseed language was Sealth, which many thought rhymed with "wealth" and that is incorrect. It was a difficult name to pronounce in English. The phonetic sound is "See-aht" with the 't' pronounced hard and quick and sounds almost like 'tch'.
Sealth's father was Schweabe, a Suquamish chief. Schweabe lived on Bainbridge Island, across the Puget Sound from Seattle. Sealth's mother, Scholitza, was the daughter of a Duwamish chief. According to the custom of the Duwamish tribe, the matrilineal descent determined that Sealth was Duwamish. In later years, however, Sealth became leader of both the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes. He was a warrior who gained respect for his courage, intelligence and leadership in battle. His lineage enabled him to be recognized in the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes as one of noble birth which was necessary for one to lead the People. In his youth, a vision gave him the power of the Thunderbird, which is a powerful symbol in the Pacific Northwest.
Sealth had control of six tribes in the area and, as his father before him, was able to maintain an amiable relationship with the early Europeans. He even gave protection to the early white settlers when threats and attacks by other tribes were a danger. In gratitude of this and his friendship, Seattle, the city, was named after him.
Sealth was born in the Suquamish winter village on Blake Island in Old Man House. The 600 foot long winter house was built by Sealth's father and Chief Kitsap, an uncle of Sealth's. This is where Sealth grew up. The winter village is on the shoreline of Agate Passage.
Early settlers reached Puget Sound in 1846, and Sealth welcomed them. He was known as a friend of the whites. When Col. Isaac N. Ebey and B. F. Shaw visited Elliott Bay in 1850, Sealth greeted and welcomed them. Ebey's enthusiastic report of the land, in the Oregon Spectator just after this, encouraged more settlement in the Duwamish River Valley. Even though the settlers preferred to keep the native people separate from their own, this did not discourage Sealth from his friendship to the whites.
Kikisoblu was Sealth's eldest daughter and was famous in her own right. Like her father, she refused to leave her home and remained throughout her life, living in a small cabin by the waterfront. Among other people who loved and admired her was Edward S. Curtis, the most famous photographer of Native Americans. He often photographed Princess Angeline, as the people of Seattle called her. It is said that it was she who inspired him to go on his long journey to capture the essence of the Native American peoples in their natural settings.
The famous speech that was said to have been given by Sealth in 1854 was originally written by Henry A. Smith, 33 years after the death of Sealth. Smith had been at the presentation and expanded on his scattered notes. In 1891, Frederick James Grant reprinted the speech in his History Of Seattle. In 1929, Clarence B. Bagley added to Grant's version and reprinted the speech in his History Of King County, Washington. John M. Rich, in 1931, reprinted Bagley's version in Chief Seattle's Unanswered Challenge. Ted Perry, in 1971, was the latest to reprint his own version of anachronistic material for a movie titled Home. The movie was not a hit and quickly disappeared, but it was that version of "Chief Seattle's" speech that is the most popular and most attributed to Sealth.
Regardless of what the true version of the original speech was, the Suquamish tribe have taken the words to their hearts and claim it as their own history - for these beautifully written words are symbolic of the life and ways of the tribe and the way they feel about their homeland, of which they were the first inhabitants. You can read the entire speech at the related link below this article.
Throughout the Indian Wars of the 1850's, Sealth gave protection to and maintained close friendships with white leaders and settlers. He died in his homeland on Bainbridge Island from fever and illness June 7, 1866. James Wehn, sculptor of the local area, created a magnificent statue of Sealth, Chief Seattle. The statue stands watch over Tilikum Place in Seattle Center and is in the National Register of Historic Places. Sealth was buried in Suquamish, Washington, on the Port Madison Indian Reservation.
"... all things share the same breath - the beast, the tree, the man ... the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports."
Chief Seattle, 1854
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